Assessment of the efficacy of firocoxib (Previcox®) and grapiprant (Galliprant®) in an induced model of acute arthritis in dogs

Abstract

Background Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are an important tool in the management of canine osteoarthritis, with the most recent introduction into the category being grapiprant, a piprant that selectively targets the EP4 prostaglandin receptor. To date there have been no efficacy studies comparing grapiprant with other NSAIDs. A randomized, two-sequence, assessor-blinded study involving two separate experiments was undertaken to measure the potency and persistence of acute pain control over 24 h resulting from a single oral dose of either firocoxib (Previcox®) or grapiprant (Galliprant®) in an acute arthritis model. Results Force-plate derived lameness ratios (0, no force recorded on the plate; 1, normal force) for the untreated group remained at 0 for most post-arthritis induction (PAI) assessments in both experiments. Throughout Experiment 1, mean PAI lameness ratios of the firocoxib-treated group remained at or above 0.80. In the grapiprant-treated group, ratios were 0 at 5 and 7 h PAI (7 and 9 h post-treatment), and 0.16 at 10 h PAI (12 h post-treatment). For lameness ratios, relative to the firocoxib group, the control and grapiprant group ratios were significantly lower at each PAI assessment ( p ≤ 0.026 and p < 0.001, respectively), except at 1.5 h PAI at which acute pain was still not installed in untreated control dogs. In Experiment 2 the mean lameness ratios for the control group were 0 at 3, 5 and 7 h PAI, and in the grapiprant group at 5, 7 and 10 h PAI (i.e., 19, 21, and 24 h post-treatment). In the firocoxib group the lowest mean lameness ratio of 0.36 occurred at 3 h PAI (i.e. 17 h post-treatment). Except at 1.5 and 3 h PAI (i.e. 15.5 and 17 h post-treatment), due to the needed time for pain to install in the untreated control dogs, the lameness ratio differences between the firocoxib and both the control and grapiprant groups were significant at all assessments ( p ≤ 0.033 for both groups). No significant differences were detected between the grapiprant and control groups in either experiment. Conclusions Firocoxib treatment prior to induction of arthritis in dogs resulted in a high level of analgesia from the first post-treatment assessment at 1.5 h through 24 h post-treatment. The reduction in lameness provided by firocoxib was consistently superior to that provided by grapiprant, which was not significantly different from untreated controls.

Pharmacology of enflicoxib, a new coxib drug: Efficacy and dose determination by clinical and pharmacokinetic‐guided approach for the treatment of osteoarthritis in dogs based on an acute arthritis induction model

“…Signs of pain during palpation were scored (PS) as described for efficacy evaluation of other NSADs (Millis et al., 2002 ; Borer et al., 2003 ; Dauteloup et al., 2017 ). Lameness was scored while standing according to semi‐quantitative scales previously described (Dauteloup et al., 2017 ; de Salazar Alcalá et al., 2019 ). The combined visual lameness score (CLS), determined as the sum of the standing and walking lameness scores, was also calculated.…”

Therapeutic Efficacy and Safety Evaluation of Flex ChoiceTM in Moderately Osteoarthritic Dog

“…The use of nutraceuticals is becoming more and more common in veterinary medicine for prevention and treatment of common diseases, including OA [104,33,82,65,67,32,35,36,25]. New nutraceuticals or new use of old nutraceuticals are being evaluated for efficacy and safety in dogs with OA.…”

“…Since there is no cure for OA, management of OA in canines is usually aimed at minimizing joint pain by reducing inflammation, slowing the progression of cartilage degeneration and improving cartilage repair, thereby increasing the joint's flexibility and quality of life for the animal. In the past, among various choices (such as NSAIDS, therapeutic drugs, physiotherapy, surgery, acupuncture, and lifestyle changes), veterinarians have used NSAIDs [26,40,48,108,71,52,25]. However, due to severe side effects such as gastrointestinal bleeding, cardiac, hepatic, and renal dysfunction, reduced appetite, vomiting, and inhibition of bone healing, many veterinarians are currently using nutraceuticals [63,12,66,93,76,42,87,20,1,34,35].…”

The Protective Effect of Dietary Administration of Puerarin on Canine Osteoarthritis Model With Anterior Cruciate Ligament Transected

“…Sulfated glycosaminoglycan or hyaluronic acid injections are often used in horses [7]. NSAIDs exert anti-in ammatory effects by self-inhibiting cyclooxygenase (COX-1 and COX-2), which is produced by the breakdown of arachidonic acid due to cell wall damage [8].…”